Angry conservatives, explained
But Trump 2.0 has in just over a month pushed me, a traditional conservative, to agree with Democrats on many key issues: that Russia began the war against Ukraine and must be defeated, and that America needs free trade, a strong NATO alliance,
These differences with the Republican Party find me, after 48 years as a loyal member, now a political independent. How did we get here?
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The person of Donald Trump is not the answer: He is who he is. Rather, the cause lies in Republicans choosing him three times as their leader. How did a historically staid party associated with boardrooms and country clubs shun conventional politicians in favor of an immoral, greedy, litigious, egocentric, inconsistent, instinctive, and vulgar outsider?
In brief: The story began in the turbulent mid-1960s, when radicals rampaged (Chicago, 1968), following which liberals went too far left (George McGovern) and became too soft (hostages in Iran for 444 days). Those excesses and weaknesses spurred the morning-in-America reaction led by Ronald Reagan, a resounding conservative success that prompted Democrats to move back to the center, adopt the Third Way, and elect Bill Clinton as president.
Underneath the seemingly placid 1990s, however, a reinvigorated left repudiated that centrism and spoiled for a fight. The
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The right responded with uncharacteristic fury, as first manifested by the Tea Party movement. Significantly, the intellectual
Trump uncannily articulated the Republicans' medley of anger, contempt, and radicalism. In House Speaker
For his part, Trump grew into his role of their near-deity, evolving from an amateurish china-shop bull to a seasoned, highly skilled, and determined strongman. Foiled by 'the adults in the room' during his first administration, he now demands and receives obeisance to his overweening persona. He refers to himself as '
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This perilous moment raises questions about the future of angry conservatism. I expect MAGA will go too far, slashing budgets with
I predict that abnormality and failings will burn out the revolutionary mood now dominating the Republican Party. MAGA will not last another decade, after which manners will return, along with ethics, constancy, expertise, and principles.
In the meantime, this conservative remains a resolutely unaffiliated independent.
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20 minutes ago
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Newsweek
20 minutes ago
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MAGA Supporters Counter Anti-ICE Protests: 'Go Back to Mexico'
Based on facts, either observed and verified firsthand by the reporter, or reported and verified from knowledgeable sources. Newsweek AI is in beta. Translations may contain inaccuracies—please refer to the original content. Several Donald Trump supporters in Tampa, Florida, have started counter-protests to anti-ICE, Immigration and Customs Enforcement, demonstrations. Video footage posted on X, formerly Twitter, shows a man holding a red "MAGA country" flag chanting "we want ICE" and telling a woman holding a Mexican flag: "If you love Mexico, go back to Mexico." In another clip, a group of men can be seen holding a Trump-Vance banner, before move for a truck coming through. Hundreds gathered outside Tampa's City Hall to protest on Monday, after a weekend of violent clashes between anti-ICE demonstrators and law enforcement. Police intervened during some heated moments between anti-ICE protesters and counter-protesters but there was no violence, according to Tampa broadcaster FOX13. This is a developing story - more to follow.
